1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a transparent toner for developing an electrostatic latent image, an electrostatic latent image developer, a toner cartridge, a process cartridge, an image forming apparatus and an image forming method.
2. Related Art
Methods for visualizing image information using an electrostatic latent image such as an electrophotographic method are currently used in many fields. In the electrophotographic method, image information is visualized as an image through steps including a charging and exposing step that forms an image information as an electrostatic latent image on the surface of a latent image holding member (photoreceptor) a transfer step that transfers the toner image which has been formed on the surface of the photoreceptor using a developer containing a toner to a recording medium (receiving material), and a fixing step that fixes the toner image onto the surface of the recording medium.
Color image formation using a color electrophotographic method there has been a great increase in numbers in recent years is performed by reproducing color, generally using four color toners including subtractive three primary colors, namely yellow, magenta and cyan and black toner.
In general color electrophotographic method, first, a manuscript (image information) is decomposed into colors of yellow, magenta, cyan and black to form an electrostatic latent image of each color on the surface of a photoreceptor. Then, the electrostatic latent image formed for each color is developed, using a developer containing each color toner, to form a toner image. The toner image is then transferred onto the surface of a recording medium through a transfer step. A series of steps from the formation of an electrostatic latent image to the transfer of a toner image onto the surface of a recording medium are sequentially carried out for each color, so that the toner images of the individual colors are overlaid and transferred onto the surface of the recording medium. In such manner, the colored toner image obtained by transferring toner image with each color onto the surface of the recording medium is fixed through a fixing step to give a color image.
For forming such color image, attempts have been made for correcting the gloss difference on the in-plane of the image, controlling gloss on the surface of a transfer paper, and correcting between image concentration and an applied amount of the toner, using a transparent toner in addition to conventional Y (yellow), M (magenta) and C (cyan), and BK (black) toners.